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Pub’s key role in CAMRA history celebrated

Pints of cask beer were raised in St Albans to celebrate the survival of the Farriers Arms, a pub that played a key role in the 55 year-history of CAMRA. A new plaque was unveiled and greeted by a large crowd to mark the fact that the Farriers is home to the longest surviving branch of the Campaign. Hertfordshire branch was formed in 1972 and was so influential in encouraging the growth of cask beer in the region that it was divided into North and South Herts, Herts Essex Borders and Watford and District branches. In recent years there were fears the Farriers might close but a spirited local campaign saved it. The building was originally a corner shop and then a butcher’s in the 19th and early 20th centuries but was turned into a pub in the 1920s by Hertford family brewer McMullen.